Map: SXSW 2013 Street Closures and Transportation Options

Update: South by Southwest Film and Music continue through the weekend.

Original Story (March 7, 4:10 p.m.): Austin’s just 24 hours away from South by Southwest’s annual Film and Interactive conferences – meaning thousands of people are arriving this moment.

In preparation, the City of Austin has announced several street closures and traffic detours beginning Friday, March 8, and running through Sunday, March 17.

Street Closures:

Rainey Street: Closed daily between 6 p.m. – 3 a.m., March 8–17. Traffic must enter at River Street. There will be restricted access reserved for local businesses and residents.

East Fifth Street, from I-35 to Waller Street: Closed from March 8, 7 a.m. to March 17, 3 a.m.

Trinity Street from Cesar Chavez Street to Fourth Street: Closed from March 8, 7 a.m. to March 17, 3 a.m. East Second and Third Streets, from San Jacinto Boulevard to Trinity Street, will also be closed during that time, and open only to local traffic.

Aside from planned street closures, there are plenty of private parties and events anticipated around downtown and just east of IH-35, which may create additional traffic delays throughout the festival. Consult the City of Austin’s map of street closures and traffic detours for updates.

Public Transportation:

Capital Metro is reinforcing its transportation throughout the 10-day festival.

Bus routes will have expanded weekend hours, more weekday frequency and several late night options. All downtown routes will be detoured along Guadalupe or Lavaca streets (except the MetroAirport Route) and Cap Metro’s Night Owl and E-Bus will have service until 3 a.m.

Related Content

[This story originally ran on Feb. 22, 2013, but still applies today.]

We get a lot of mail at NPR Music, and amid the Valentine's Day cards that got returned with no forwarding address is a slew of smart questions about how music fits into our lives — and, this week, how music fans could and should approach SXSW, the gigantic music festival held every March in Austin, Texas.

Can homeless people pedal their way into a home? An Austin nonprofit certainly hopes so.

It also hopes to capitalize on the large crowds drawn to town for South by Southwest. So, during the festival, the nonprofit Mobile Loaves and Fishes equipped a group of homeless people with foot-powered snack-vending carts and uniforms. The new business is called Street Treats, and the vendors get to keep the profits.

With just over a month until Austin’s South by Southwest festival begins, the city’s special events office has received a flurry of permit applications – everything from noise permits, to food service, to construction permits for big soundstages.